The market capitalisation of BSE-listed companies jumped to a record high of Rs 2,40,04,664.28 crore on Tuesday, driven by a rally in stocks that also saw the benchmark Sensex touching its lifetime peak of 53,887.98 points. Rallying for the second consecutive day on Tuesday, the 30-share BSE index closed at a fresh closing peak of 53,823.36 points, a jump of 872.73 points or 1.65 per cent. During the day, it zoomed 937.35 points to 53,887.98 points.
Lok Sabha proceedings were adjourned for the day on Thursday following a request from the government that the Indian Antarctic Bill, 2022 be taken up for consideration when Opposition members are also present in the House.
By changing the nation's name from India to Bharat, would this landmass overnight lose the emotional and cultural linkage that had been built over generations, centuries and millennia, asks N Sathiya Moorthy.
Responding strongly to attacks on him by Congress chief Sonia Gandhi, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday implied that she wielded real power during the United Progressive Alliance rule as an "extra-constitutional" authority whereas his government was run only by constitutional means.
In several areas, the Indian government has put out a model law.
The Economic Offences Wing of the Delhi Police has filed an FIR against former BharatPe co-founder Ashneer Grover, his wife Madhuri Jain Grover and family members Deepak Gupta, Suresh Jain and Shwetank Jain for an alleged Rs 81 crore fraud after a complaint by the fintech unicorn. The FIR, a copy of which has been seen by PTI, was filed under eight sections of the Indian Penal Code, including 406 that deals with criminal breach of trust, 420 (cheating and dishonesty), 467 and 468 (forgery). BharatPe in the complaint alleged that Grover and his family caused damages of about Rs 81.3 crore through illegitimate payments to bogus human resource consultants, inflated and undue payments through passthrough vendors connected to the accused, sham transactions in input tax credit and payment of penalty to GST authorities, illegal payment to travel agencies, forged invoices by Madhuri Jain and destruction of evidence.
'NPT waiver is like being allowed in the verandah. NSG membership is like being in the room... being part of rule making.'
The government on Friday proposed hiking the securities transaction tax on Futures & Options (F&O) contracts, a move that will increase the trading costs in the derivatives segment as well as help in curbing excessive trades. In the Finance Bill 2023, passed by the Lok Sabha on Friday, the Securities Transaction Tax (STT) on options is proposed to be increased to 0.0625 per cent from 0.05 per cent and on futures contracts to 0.0125 from 0.01 per cent. Analysts opined that higher STT will shore up the government's revenues to some extent and also discourage excessive trading since a large number of retail traders are losing money in the segment.
Modi is optimistic that the reforms will be passed soon.
'Prime Minister Modi stated several times that we shall not let this challenge go away without converting it into an opportunity to undertake systemic reforms.' 'And hasn't that been reiterated in action?'
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Monday said that repealing the three farm laws without a debate in Parliament shows that the government is "terrified" and knows that it has done something wrong.
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) announced new rules for credit cards, applicable from July 1. "These directions cover the general and conduct regulations relating to credit, debit and co-branded cards which shall be read along with prudential, payment and technology & cyber security related directions applicable to credit, debit and co-branded cards, as issued by the Reserve Bank," the circular by RBI said. Business Standard culled out key rules from the list, and asked financial experts for advice on them, along with the thumb rules one needs to follow while using credit cards.
The report cautioned that low capacity utilisation and stressed balance sheets of banks and businesses will prevent a strong investment revival in the short term.
There are two ways: Deliver a rapidly growing economic pie or reform GST and close corporate tax loopholes, suggests T N Ninan.
On the stalled goods and services tax bill, Modi said the Congress has made it a prestige issue but expressed confidence that the evolving arithmetic in Rajya Sabha would ensure that the legislation would be passed soon.
During a media interaction, Mamata Banerjee voiced her discontent over the Centre's 'stepfatherly' attitude towards Bengal. Banerjee's detractors feel that the agenda that she conveyed to the media is nothing but an eyewash. According to them, 'Mamata and Modi are heading towards an alliance of convenience'. Indrani Roy reports from Kolkata on the agenda and politics of prime minister two-day visit to the state.
We should work in unison to boost growth: FM
'The fabric of democracy is fraying,' says T V R Shenoy. 'It is being attacked not just by terrorists in Kashmir or by zealots in the North-East, but is being ripped apart even in Allahabad, in the Hindi heartland.'
According to market experts, GST Bill, movement of the rupee and uncertain global cues amid expected rate cut by the US Fed will dictate the movement of the markets.
Venkaiah Naidu told the members that provocative statements are being used by anti-BJP forces to deflect the attention from Prime Minister Narendra Modi's development agenda.
'Congress party's strategy is two fold -- to disturb and delay.'
While the formation of a holding company will not outright privatise State-owned banks, officials believe it will help the Centre deflect criticism arising out of the latest banking scams.
A day after the constitution amendment bill that enabled mega reform Goods and Services Tax Bill or GST was unanimously passed, action continues in Monsoon session of Parliament.
Catch all the action from the Monsoon session of Parliament, LIVE
Those hardest hit by the second wave of the pandemic have been blue-collared workers, doctors and healthcare workers, law and order and municipal personnel, individuals eking out daily livelihood, and small businesses. And there should be more measures taken to alleviate their pain, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) said on Monday. The report also indicated that the RBI's growth numbers might have to be revisited as the central bank's real GDP growth projection of 26.2 per cent given in the MPC's resolution of April 7 for the first quarter of 2021-22, were "made before the full fury of the resurgence." Nevertheless, the "resurgence of COVID-19 has dented but not debilitated economic activity in the first half of Q1: 2021-22.
Dealers attributed the rupee's fall to increased demand for the US currency from importers.
The stormy monsoon session of Parliament came to an end on Thursday, becoming a virtual washout and delaying legislations which could not be passed because of continuous acrimony.
Never before has the need for creating an ambience for economic policy reforms been as critical as it is now, points out A K Bhattacharya.
The Modi administration has been unable to initiate key reforms.
The government will borrow Rs 5.03 lakh crore in the second half of the current fiscal to fund the revenue gap for reviving the pandemic-hit economy, the finance ministry said on Monday. During the first half, the government has raised Rs 7.02 lakh crore by issuing bonds, the ministry said in a statement. "Out of gross market borrowing of Rs 12.05 lakh crore projected for FY 2021-22 in the Union Budget, Rs 7.24 lakh crore (60 per cent) was planned to be borrowed in first half (H1).
Sonia Gandhi's iftar was meant to be a powerful show of unity of Opposition parties to take on the Modi Sarkar, but that was not to be...
The outcome is beyond the market's expectation and will be a sentimental boost, say analysts.
They were participating in a debate on the bill for giving effect to various compliance relief measures for taxpayers, including extending time limits for filing returns, in the wake of the coronavirus crisis and tax benefits for donations to PM CARES Fund.
'The role of Parliament is to hold the government of the day, whichever party is in power, accountable for its actions, policies.' 'The amount we are wasting on Parliament is a very miniscule amount. But the cost of delay in policy-making is huge and that affects the entire nation.'
India's economy is moving towards a higher growth trajectory and is likely to grow at around 10 per cent in 2021-22, Economic Advisory Council to the Prime Minister (EAC-PM) chairman Bibek Debroy said on Wednesday. "I am confident that we are on a path towards a higher growth trajectory, higher poverty reduction, higher employment, and a prosperous, more developed and better governed India. "I think it is, more or less, agreed that the real rate of growth this year (FY2022) is going to be around 10 per cent," Debroy said at an SBI event. At the beginning of FY2021-22, the forecasts for real growth were in the 8.5-12.5 per cent range, he noted.
Only those who stick to the old I-T regime will get this benefit.
Finance secretary Ajay Bhushan Pandey on Sunday hinted that the government was working on another stimulus package but he refrained from giving a timeframe.
Honest tax payers need not worry about the new black money law, says finance minister Arun Jaitley.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi hit out at the Congress for "misusing" Parliament to stop the country's growth and hailed Samajwadi Party chief Mulayam Singh Yadav for "understanding this conspiracy" and working to end the logjam in the House.
The Congress on Monday sought a discussion on the latest report of the CAG, listing alleged irregularities in Gujarat State Petroleum Corporation's KG basin gas project and forced three adjournments in Rajya Sabha in the pre-noon session demanding a response from Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
